FCC's Genachowski Talks Spectrum, U.S. Tech Future at CES

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski on Friday sat down with CEA president Gary Shapiro here at the Consumer Electronics Show to discuss everything from spectrum and the FCC's role in dealing with new technologies to assistive technology and Genachowksi's legacy.

LAS VEGAS  FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski on Friday sat down with CEA president Gary Shapiro here at the Consumer Electronics Show to discuss everything from spectrum and the FCC's role in dealing with new technologies to assistive technology and Genachowksi's legacy.

In a speech before the sit-down, Genachowski spoke at length to a packed crowd (below) about the need for additional spectrum and incentive auctions to get that accomplished, which PCMag covered in an earlier story. He then sat down with Shapiro for some Q&A.

When pressed on the spectrum issue, Genachowski insisted this is an issue that could be solved quickly. "We could be in a position  if Congress asks  to auction this spectrum in the next year or two and put the spectrum on the market," he said. "That's the pace at which we need to move, given the incredible demand [for] spectrum."

Incentive auctions would allow TV broadcasters to sell unused spectrum, which would be used for mobile broadband purposes. Congress, however, has to authorize the FCC to proceed with those auctions.

Without additional spectrum, U.S. global competitiveness is at risk, Genachowski said. "It's clear now that our success depends on having a robust, vibrant, world-class digital infrastructure  wired and wireless," he said.

The auctions should not be viewed as a punishment for broadcasters. "It's just we have a disruptive, new technology in the market that we have to take advantage of for our economy," Genachowski said, referring to mobile broadband.

In a statement, the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) said "broadcasters have no quarrel with an incentive auction that is truly voluntary."

"It's also noteworthy that broadcasters have already returned 108 MHz of spectrum to the government, a position that makes us the only user of airwaves that has returned spectrum to the government," NAB continued. "Simply put, broadcast television is far and away the most efficient user of spectrum because of a 'one-to-many' transmission system that is remarkably reliable in a communications era best known for inconsistent 'one-to-one' cell phone connections."

Genachowski insisted that it is the FCC's core mission to do "everything we can to make sure we have [an eco-system] that's competitive and conducive to the greatest possible innovation."

Without that, slow speeds and dropped calls will be the least of our problems, Genachowski said. Instead, the U.S. will have to worry about next-generation technologies and start-ups developing "in another country and not here."

Some argued recently that Genachowski's FCC was stifling innovation with his net neutrality order. But Friday's talk barely touched on the topic, and Shapiro said he thought of it as a very 2010 issue. It was a far cry from Genachowski's appearance last year, which happened on the same day as the FCC went to court with Comcast over its network management appeal, making net neutrality topic number one.

When asked about his major priorities beyond spectrum for 2011, Genachowski pointed to reform of the universal service fund (USF). The USF provides funds to ensure that all Americans have access to telecom services in places like schools and libraries, but it is currently focused on the telephone system when it should focus on broadband, he said.

Shapiro also asked Genachowski about the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act, a bill signed into law in October that requires makers of smartphones and other consumer electronics to ensure that their technologies are accessible to those with vision or hearing loss.

Genachowski said it was a "great achievement for Congress" and said he hopes it leads to the development of new technologies with the disabled in mind. One of the more frustrating things for the disabilities technology community has been that manufacturers often develop products and then retrofit those products for the disabled, he said.

"The opportunity that I think this law gives us is to tackle some of the access issues for people with disabilities earlier in the development stage of products and do it in a way that hopefully is ultimately less costly and that takes advantage of the opportunities in this market," Genachowski said.

When asked how the bill's requirements might affect start-ups struggling to make ends meet, Genachowski said that's why the FCC needs to work with developers of new products to "address it in a smart way."

Finally, Shapiro pressed Genachowski on his legacy, but the chairman was coy. "Ask me in a few years," he said.

Chloe Albanesius has been with PCMag.com since April 2007, most recently as Executive Editor for News and Features. Prior to that, she worked for a year covering financial IT on Wall Street for Incisive Media. From 2002 to 2005, Chloe covered technology policy for The National Journal's Technology Daily in Washington, DC. She has held internships at NBC's Meet the Press, washingtonpost.com, the Tate Gallery press office in London, Roll Call, and Congressional Quarterly. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in journalism from American University...
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